The tragic end to the search for a missing 19-year-old College of Charleston student was announced by the Charleston Police Department on Saturday. Owen Tillman Kenney, who had been reported missing since Halloween, was found deceased near Patriots Point. The police confirmed that the young man had taken his own life.
Kenney, originally from Tinton Falls, New Jersey, was last seen by his friends in the early hours of October 31 near King Street and Burns Lane, a short distance from his residence. His family had previously expressed their distress over his disappearance in a statement on social media.
The Charleston Police Department had been conducting an extensive search for Kenney since his disappearance. Surveillance footage showed Kenney walking alone onto the Ravenel Bridge pedestrian walkway, approximately three miles from his last known location, shortly after 3 a.m. His phone’s last known location was also traced to the same area.
After nearly a week of search efforts, the focus shifted to recovery after video evidence indicated that Kenney had died by suicide on the bridge’s walkway at 3:49 a.m. His body was eventually discovered in the water near Patriots Point at around 8:45 a.m. on Saturday.
Charleston Police Chief Chito Walker expressed his gratitude to everyone involved in the search efforts and hoped that the discovery would bring some closure to the Kenney family. He also urged the public to respect the family’s privacy during this challenging time.
Kenney was a graduate of New Jersey’s Red Bank Catholic High School and was attending the College of Charleston at the time of his death. The college’s president, Andrew T. Hsu, expressed his condolences in a statement, acknowledging the profound loss of a young life full of potential. He also emphasized the importance of community support and encouraged students affected by the tragedy to seek help through the college’s Counseling Center.